The Gospel of John

Chapter 3: 1-21

John 3:1-2

Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him."

In previous verses we saw Jesus confronting “religion,” i.e., the temple and those who occupied it. In these two and subsequent verses we see “religion” represented by a religious leader confront Christ. Nicodemus, whose name mean “leader of the people,” was a very good person. He was a Pharisees, a religious leader of the Jews. He had many responsibilities because of that position. Since his days were probably filled by many religious activities, he came to Jesus by night. Some commentators surmise that he came to Jesus by night, because he did not wish to be seen associating with Him by day. This may or may not be true; we simply don’t know.

Nicodemus immediately grants a title (Rabbi - doctor) to Christ and informs Christ that he and others (he used the plural pronoun “we”) had come to the conclusion that Christ was a teacher who had come from God. Why? Because they had to admit that only God could perform the miracles for which Christ was responsible. Whereas many came to believe “in” Christ due to His miracles, Nicodemus only recognized Him as a teacher from God. He did not see Christ as God. He was a doubter, but as a member of the Sanhedrin, he was there to “check out this person called Christ.” It is believed, due to other scriptures, that Nicodemus eventually became a believer in Christ.

John 3:3

In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. "

Nicodemus was a Jew and as most Jews He was waiting and hoping for the coming of the Messiah, who would deliver the Jewish people from the domination and bondage of Rome. The Roman Empire was then in control of the world, and the Jews were subject to its laws and government. As a Jew, Nicodemus longed for the time when the Messiah would set up His kingdom on earth and establish the Jewish people as chief among the nations and destroy all those at enmity with the Jews.

In the King James Version of the Bible, Jesus starts His reply by saying “Verily, verily.” Here in the NIV it is translated “I tell you the truth.” These are words that are normally used by Christ to precede a truth in Scripture. So we see that Christ immediately cuts off Nicodemus and proclaims a most profound truth. He says to Nicodemus that no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is “born again.” The words “born again” are best translated from the Greek as “born from above.” He was telling Nicodemus that as a person must first be born (below) on earth in order to experience physical life, he must experience another birth (from above) in order to experience the Kingdom of God, i.e., eternal (spiritual) life (“Kingdom of God” was part of Jewish theology denoting the “Eternal Kingdom,” representing those who possessed eternal life).

John 3:4

"How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"

Nicodemus by his reply to Christ was either ignorant or was being a smart aleck with Christ in an attempt to trip Him up. It is most likely the latter. This conclusion comes from the fact that Nicodemus completely ignored the words, “from above.” If he had been serious, he would have understood that this meant born from or of God. Instead it appears that he tries to trip up Christ by focusing on being born physically a second time. He sarcastically states that a person cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born. Jesus didn’t say anything like that. Nicodemus is simply “religious,” and he cannot apparently think in terms of spiritual truth. This is a trait of the “religious” ilk.

John 3:5, 6

Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.

Jesus ignores the sarcasm, and again says “Verily, verily,” i.e., more spiritual truth, and comes right to the point. Christ clearly denotes the difference between the physical and spiritual births. There are several interpretations relating to “born of water and the Spirit.”

One patently erroneous interpretation is that “water” represents baptism. Such a teaching is clearly contrary to the rest of God’s Word. Throughout the Bible salvation is by faith alone in Christ alone. Baptism is intended for those who have already been saved (as a testimony), but not as a means of salvation.

One possible interpretation is that “water” represents “physical birth” and “Spirit” the spiritual birth. This may in fact be the case since the discussion is about two births, and (1) the concept of physical birth is surfaced by Nicodemus and (2) physical birth is associated with the “breaking of water.” If this is the case, then born of water and the Spirit would then parallel and reinforce the next few words, which are Flesh gives birth to flesh [physical birth], but the Spirit [Holy Spirit] gives birth to spirit [spiritual birth]. This portion of the passage is clear. Christ is contrasting physical birth with spiritual birth.

Another possible interpretation suggests that “water” here refers to the Word of God. In Ephesians 5:25, 26 water is closely associated with the Word of God. Also, in James 1:18 and 1 Peter 1:23, the new birth is said to take place through or by means of the Word of God, specifically “the Gospel.” It is true that prior to salvation a person must be exposed to the Gospel, so it is certainly true that the “new birth” comes by means of the Word of God and the Spirit of God. This combination is seen in 1 Thessalonians 1:4, 5.

Still another interpretation has “water” representing the Holy Spirit. In John 7:38, 39 the Lord spoke of rivers of living water, and this use of water is explained distinctly as the Holy Spirit. Also, in the verse under consideration the word “and” connecting “water” and “the Spirit” according to some scholars could have just as correctly been interpreted as “even.” This would then make it born of water, even the Spirit. If this is the correct interpretation, then it could very well be a grammatical structure by which Christ emphasizes that the “new birth” is by means of the Spirit of God.

Any of the interpretations may be correct except the one that makes “water” refer to baptism. I lean toward “water” referring to the “physical birth,” but I cannot be dogmatic. I can just as easily accept that water in this context refers to the “Word” or the “Holy Spirit,” or both, since all are true. The fact is that a person born only once will die twice (physical and spiritual death), and a person born twice (physically and spiritually) will die only once (physical death - unless of course the Rapture comes first). The purpose of Christ’s explanation to Nicodemus at this time was to point out to him that being born from above was a spiritual and not a physical event - since “flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.” Titus 3:5.

John 3:7, 8

You should not be surprised at my saying, `You must be born again.' The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."

Now Christ makes it personal to Nicodemus, the religious one. He says “you” must be born from above. This is what “religion” needs - the rebirth. He illustrates the rebirth by the wind. Like the wind, the rebirth by the Spirit of God is something one cannot see. One can only see the effects of the wind - the same with the rebirth by the Spirit of God. You cannot see the rebirth but once a person is saved, his attitude and desires take an abrupt change of course. He is a different person. You can only see the outward change, i.e., the rebirth’s affect on the person.

John 3:9-12

"How can this be?" Nicodemus asked. "You are Israel's teacher," said Jesus, "and do you not understand these things? I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things?

Nicodemus counters with a question. He wants to know how this “birth from above” can take place. Here we see that Nicodemus, the religious one, knows nothing of God’s plan. This is true of all religion. Religion just doesn’t understand the Grace Plan of God. Jesus replies with what appears to be some sarcasm. He asked Nicodemus how by being a religious leader and teacher that he isn’t aware of these spiritual concepts. Jesus then using the editorial plural pronoun (meaning the “believers” of that time-applicable to all believers today) tells Nicodemus quite frankly that “we” speak only of what we know, i.e., what we personally experience, and testify (witness) of what we have personally seen. This should be true of any believer today. Unfortunately if this restriction were placed on all churches of today, there would be hundreds and thousands of church closings. There are too many churches with pastors who know nothing about Bible doctrine. They may know what their “religion” tells them to believe and preach, but they have not personally experienced Christ Jesus. And they surely haven’t learned any Bible doctrine. You have to know something in order to communicate something. Jesus communicated doctrine and because He not only knew it but He was God’s Word (Bible Doctrine) embodied in human form, and therefore He communicated with the utmost authority.

But still the religious mind will not accept the testimony of truth, i.e., Bible doctrine. The religious person simply cannot understand the concept of grace and faith. It only understands “works.” The religious person is controlled by “human” and not “divine” good; therefore, he has no need for grace and the concept of faith. Even though Jesus informs Nicodemus that He communicates with and by the highest authority, i.e., the authority of God, Nicodemus still could not understand. Christ states that if the religious mind will not accept an explanation of earthly matters, how then will it accept even more difficult-to-understand spiritual matters. Since the religious mind is Satan’s playground, this should be easy for the believer to comprehend. Even earthly matters are corrupted by the unconverted, e.g., the “Big Bang Theory” of creation and evolution for examples. If this is the case, and it is, then how can we expect the unbeliever or religious person to understand spiritual truths?

John 3:13

No one has ever gone [ascended] into heaven except the One who came from heaven--the Son of Man [who keeps on being in heaven - most manuscripts].

Only one person was completely qualified to teach spiritual truths, the Lord Jesus Christ. Unlike Enoch and Elijah who were “taken up” (and did not “ascend”) into heaven, Jesus not only came down from heaven, but He could ascend into heaven and as the third person of the Trinity was always in heaven. What Christ is actually saying to Nicodemus is that the truth He was sharing with him is of the highest authority, that is, it is heaven sent, because Christ is always in heaven, even while He is talking to Nicodemus on earth. What’s He saying? Jesus is saying that He is the God-man. God is omnipresent, and this verse illustrates this doctrinal truth.

John 3:14, 15

Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up [on the cross], that everyone who believes in Him [will not perish, but] will have eternal life.

Jesus further explains the second birth (“from above”) using an Old Testament reference (Numbers 24:4-9), one that Nicodemus would surely understand. Here Christ refers to the children of Israel when they wandered through the wilderness towards the Promised Land. During this time they became discouraged and impatient. They complained (sinned) against God. To punish them, God sent fiery snakes among them to bite them. The poisonous bites would eventually lead to death. Because of this the children of Israel cried out to God. Hearing their plea, God instructed Moses to make a snake out of brass and place it on a pole. He then told Moses to tell the children of Israel that whosoever was bitten and would look up to the brass snake on the pole, would be healed. Here we see a perfect example of salvation (second birth) by faith in Christ. Men and women have been bitten by the snake of sin and are condemned to eternal death. The brass (and brass in the Bible speaks of judgment) snake lifted up on the pole is typical of Jesus Christ who bore the judgment for our sins while lifted up on the cross of Calvary. It surely must have seemed weird to the children of Israel when they were told that all they had to do was look up to the snake for healing. Surely, there must be more to it than that. It takes no effort to just look up. But those were God’s instructions. Basically, it was an opportunity to “take God at His Word,” i.e., to express faith (trust). And Jesus concludes that just as the children of Israel only had to look up in faith (i.e., taking God at His Word) to the brass snake on the pole, so anyone who would simply believe in (have faith in) Jesus would have eternal life. Christ Jesus took our sins, became our sins and was judged for our sins while on the Cross of Calvary. All we need to do to have eternal life is to look up (in faith alone) to Christ alone.

John 3:16-18

For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.

In this passage we have probably the most quoted verse used by evangelical Christians of all time, John 3:16. This is because in capsule form it expresses God’s perfectly balanced plan of salvation. It reveals the balanced nature of God, i.e., His love and His wrath. It expresses the balanced formula set by God, i.e., God’s part and man’s part in it. Jesus says that in eternity past God the Father so loved the “world,” i.e., every sinner that would ever exist, who would be incapable of loving God and who would be helpless to save himself from the wrath due his sins that He decreed a way whereby anyone and everyone could be saved from (avoid) this eternal wrath. Since God is just and righteous, He cannot allow sin to go unpunished. Before time in eternity past, God knew that once man was created he would rebel against God. God further knew that no matter what man could do, man would never be able to complete God’s requirement for sin’s penalty, i.e., an eternity separated from God. God knew that only God Himself would be able to meet such a standard. Because of His great love for us, He devised a plan that centered on His uniquely born Son Jesus Christ and His Son’s sacrifice on the Cross of Calvary. God “gave.” This is an important point, “giving” is a natural outgrowth of “love.” What did He give? He gave the only uniquely born person in the whole of the universe. How was He unique? In the first place, He was the only person born of woman that did not inherit a sin nature. Christ did not have a human father, and the sinful nature of man can only be passed on through the male progenitor. In the second place and even though He was truly human, Christ was undiminished deity. He was the God-man. In the third place, He was born with a divine purpose and that centered on the Cross of Calvary. If one comes by way of the Cross, God is only Love. If one passes up the Cross, God can only be Wrath. Jesus makes it clear to Nicodemus that God the Father gave His only son and that if anyone would have faith alone in Him, he would not perish (eternal death) but have eternal life. Christ further explains that the only reason for sending His son into the world was to save and not condemn the world. Yet, and Christ makes it perfectly clear, for one to avoid condemnation, it depends solely on whether or not one will express personal faith in His Son, i.e., take God at His Word and believe only in Christ Jesus and what He did on the Cross of Calvary for one’s forgiveness of sins. But short of this, only condemnation remains. God did His part. He sent His uniquely born Son into this world to pay the debt for mankind’s sins on the Cross of Calvary. Man’s only part in this marvelous plan is to take God at His Word and receive by faith alone His Son Jesus Christ. Those who do are permanently saved (not condemned), but those who don’t are condemned to an eternity of God’s wrath already. This is the sentence that has been passed on all of us who have not accepted Christ as personal savior. We are condemned already, and the only way to wipe out this sentence is by faith alone in Christ alone. In the Bible to believe in “the name” of someone is to believe in what that person stands for. In the case of Jesus Christ, it is to believe in the promised Messiah, the Savior of the world who is undiminished deity and completely human in one person and who alone can provide salvation for anyone who by faith will accept Him.

John 3:19-21

This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of (the) Light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does (Greek - practice) evil (Greek - worthlessness) hates the Light, and will not come into (or to) the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by (Greek - produces) the truth (refers to Bible Doctrine) comes into the Light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.

Yet Jesus knew Nicodemus and was well aware of the methods Nicodemus, as a representative of the “religious” mind set, was using to attempt to trip Him up. Christ knew that a religious person cares nothing for the truth of God. Religion only understands that man can save himself by ritual, good works or some other man-concocted means. So Christ ends His conversation with Nicodemus with a scathing declaration (or, if you please, with a condemnation), clearly depicting the mind and intent of Nicodemus as well as all those who seek God through “religion.” He explains that “Light,” i.e., Christ Jesus, has come into the world, but because man is evil by nature, man loves the darkness (a Greek word that refers to “moral darkness”) that enshrouds evil and always shuns the Light. “Light” also refer to Bible Doctrine (God’s Word), but then this again refers to Jesus since He is the Living Word (John 1:1), i.e., the righteous expression of God, who illuminates and reveals man’s true nature. It is because of this that Jesus then tells Nicodemus that those who are evil will not come into the light (or better, “come to Christ”), because they know that they will be revealed for what they are, i.e., evil or “spiritually worthless” in every respect. This revelation specifically includes acts of goodwill outside of the “plan of God,” i.e., “human good.” All “good works” (human good) outside of God’s Plan are not acts of “divine good” and are therefore “dead works” (Hebrews 6:1; Ephesians 2:9; Titus 3:5) and are considered as “filthy rags” before God (Isaiah 64:6; Revelation 20:12). Remember that “divine good” can only come from empowerment by the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit only operates through believers who are in fellowship with God, i.e., filled with (controlled by) the Holy Spirit. So anyone (believer or non-believer) who operates on “human good,” hates the light (Bible Doctrine that illustrates the “Grace Principle”) because then their “human good” will be revealed as worthless or “not approved” by God. Now Nicodemus professed to be a religious leader, one who professed to go by the truth (Bible Doctrine); therefore, Jesus made it clear that this was not the case. He told Nicodemus that anyone who produces truth, i.e., Bible Doctrine in conjunction with the Holy Spirit, willingly comes to the Light (again, Jesus is the “true light” of the world - John 1:9; 8:12) so that it can be made crystal clear that what he has done had been done not by self but by and through God, which is by grace. Jesus Christ revealed the evil and worthless condition of man by living a truly holy life. The best way to reveal the crookedness of one line is to place a truly straight ruler beside it. If a person is honest, he will come to the Light, who is Jesus, and then by comparison he will see his own worthlessness and sinfulness. Only then is he then capable of making the decision to place his faith alone in Christ alone for his personal salvation, thus becoming “born from above” and the permanent recipient of eternal life.